Fuse



y 1954 c. M. GILDAY, sR 2,584,415

FUSE

Filed June 5, 1953 10 g B I INVENTOR. O AYTO/V M 6/1 04V SA? ATTO/F/VEX Patented July 20, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

present invent o relates to fuses and is concerned primarily with a fuse of th conventional plug ty e having a cartridge comprising a plurality of individual fuse elements which may be successively moved into effective position after one has burned out. This application is a continuatior in part of the abandoned appli cation of 611 ton M. Gilday, S11, Serial Number 293,292, June 13, 1.952, for Universal Renewable Electric Fuse.

At the present time home owners, such as housewives and other owners and inhabitants of premises ivl'lich include electric circuits, are often put to considerable inconvenience when a fuse burns o Of course if such a fuse burns out during e daytime, and with other fuses available, the ifficuity and annoyance may not be great but, any event, the cost of replacing a fuse is fa' fly high and when it is considered that fuses often burn out at night and when replacements are not conveniently available, it Will be recognised that when such an event occurs the he foregoing conditions the present inve Mon in mind as its foremost objective the provision of a fuse of the conventional plug type which includes a cartridge in the form of tape that is punched at spaced infall openings to provide what is in effect a rl ty of individual fuse elements. This tape is 21y housed in the body of the fuse, and the lose element at the free end bridge pair of contacts to complete at is controlled by the fuse. nary conditions this tape is covered by a cup--s cd cap that is form 01 With a small Window ope; rig for inspection purposes and which cap he removed when occasion demands so that after one fuse element has burner out the next one 11 the tape may be brought into efiec ive position. An important object 0.1": the inventio is the provision, in a fuse of the character indicated, of a cylindrical body of in sulating material that is formed with a chamber which 1 uses the tape and in which body the contact elements are arranged.

Still another object is to provide, in a fuse the type noted, a di Zr-lilre member that is adapt-ea to be forced down onto the fuse element which bridge the contacts by the cap so as to insure that the fuse element is in good efiective engagement with the contact.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide, in a fuse of the character indicated, a cap element having a Window opening arranged in t Under or its top Wall and which Window opening is ordinarily closed by a piece of or similar transparent material,

Jarious other more detailed objects and advantages of the invention, such as arise in connection with ca dug out the eimve-noted ideas in a practical embodiment, will "11 part become rent and in part be hereina 1' stated as the description of the invention proceeds.

The inve Lon. th refore, comprises a fuse which consists 6115131 13 or cylindrical body oi insulated. material providing a cha th contacts on the o posite sides thereof. Housed in this chamber is a cartridge in the form of metallic tape that is punched at spaced intervals to define a plurality of individual fuse elements, with the fuse element at the end of the tape bridging the con acts. This fuse ele-- ment is forced into engag with the contacts by a disk member of insulating material which is in turn held in effective pos ion by a cup-shaped cap having a window ope For a full and ore conipiete understanding of the invention, re erence may be had to the following description and accompanyin drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is a transverse vertical section through the fuse of this invention a completely assembled.

Fl"1ll=3 2 is a side view partly in section and partly in elevation of the it, body, disk cap in exploded relation; and

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the o body with the cap and disk removed, this v being taken about on the plane by line of this invention is as comprisl ice main elements. These are the fuse body, which is represented at E, a disk at D, and a cap at C.

The fuse body 35 comprises cylind 'cal mem ber 10 that is made of a good 51 let. material, such as porcelain, and which body defines a chamber 5!. The porcelain body It is closed at the bottom, as indicated at i2, and this bot tom carri s a terminal it? that is adapted to en gage a complemental terminal in a conventional socket that is intended to receive the fuse. The lower porJion oi the body it is formed. with coarse threads 5 5 which carry a correspondingly-shaped metallic sleeve l5 which is intended to be scr wed into the socket aforesaid.

Carri d by the body B is a metallic strip l5, having a foot I! that engages the upper or inner 3 end of the terminal i3. This strip i6 terminates at the top in a contact I8.

A second metallic strip 59 is mounted in a wall of the body It, substantially opposite to the strip I5, and the lower end of this strip it is in conductive engagement with the sleeve it, as indicated at 26. The upper end of the strip 52 takes the form of a contact 2 i.

Immediately beneath t e contacts i5 and 2! there is positioned washer 22 of good insulatmg material, such as fiber, and which washer is formed with openings for accommodating the strips l5 and iii. Preferably, an insulating shield 23 is provided. on the inner face of the strip 59 for purpose to be later described.

A cartridge in the form of a metallic tape it is positioned in the chamber N. This tape 26 is punched at spaced intervals so as to form openings 25 (see Figure 3) and it is the distance between each pair of openings '25 which determines one fuse element. The tape 2d is passed through an opening 26 in the strip iii and also through a notch 27 formed on the upperinner edge of the wall to and about the contact Hi. It is then passed over to the contact 28 and when so positioned, one of the openings 25 should lie substantially midway of the contacts is and 2!.

lfhe disk D is also of a good insulating material, such as fiber or plastic, and has a lower flat bottomed surface 28 that bears against the tape 24 where it engages the contacts i3 and 25. The upper portion of the disk D is preferably of a truncated conical shape 2s, and is formed with a central opening or passage 39.

The cap C comprises a top wall 3 i that is formed with a central opening 32 in which is positioned a piece of glass 33, or other desirable transparent material. Depending from this top wall 3i is a cylindrical skirt 34 which terminates in an internally threaded portion 85. These threads 35 are adapted to cooperate with threads 35 formed exteriorly on the upper portion of the cylinder body it. When the cap C is threaded home it forces the disk D downwardly so that the bottom surface 28 of the disk urges the tape 24 into effective engagement with the contacts is and 2!.

Operation While the mode of operation and. manner of using the fuse of this assembly is believed to be obvious from the illustration of the drawing and description of parts given, it may be briefly outlined as follows.

When a fuse burns out it will do so across the opening 25 because that is the zone of the smallest cross-sectional area, and hence the greatest resistance. When a fuse is burned out this condition ma be readily ascertained by the inspection that is made possible by the window 33 in the cap and the passage 3?! in the disk D.

After the inspection determines the fact that the fuse has burned out, all that is required is to unscrew the cap C and remove the cap, together with the disk D. That portion of the fuse between the opening 25, where the burning occurred and the contact !3, is now grasped and a pull exerted to unwind a suiiicient length of the tape 2 to bring the next opening 25 into position midv'ay between the contacts l8 and 2!. When this position has been achieved the free end of the tape will lie over the contact 2! whereupon the disk D is again positioned and the cap C again threaded home.

It is evident that the washer 22 confines the cartridge 24 within the chamber l l, but the shield at 23 prevents this cartridge from accidentally coming into engagement with the strip I9.

While a preferred specific embodiment of the invention is hereinbefore set forth, it is to be clearly understood that the invention is not to be limited to the exact constructions, mechanisms and devices illustrated and d scribed because various modifications of these details may be provided in putting the invention into practice within the purview of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a fuse of the character described, a cylindrical fuse body defining a chamber, a pair of contacts carried by said body, in spaced relation, a metallic tape in said chamber and formed with openings defining a plurality of individual fuse elements, the fuse element at the free end of said tape bridging said contacts, a disk of insulating material engaging that portion of the tape that extends over said contacts, and. a cap forcing said disk against said tape.

2. In a fuse, a cylindrical body of insulating material having an upper externally threaded portion and formed with a chamber, a pair of contacts carried by said body in spaced relation, a metallic tape in said chamber and formed with a series of spaced openings defining individual fuse elements with the fuse element at the free end of said tape bridging said contacts, a disk of insulating material formed with a central passage and engaging the tape where it crosses said contacts, and a cap having a top wall formed with a window opening and a socket having a threaded portion engaging the threads on said body.

3. In a fuse having a pair of spaced contacts, a cartridge in the form of a metallic tape having a plurality of spaced apertures defining individual fuse elements with the fuse element at the end of said tape bridging said contacts.

l. In a fuse of the character described, a cylindrical body of insulating material defining a chamber and having a closed bottom, a terminal carried by said bottom, that portion of said body adjacent to said bottom being formed with coarse threads, a metallic sleeve of the same shape and fitted over said coarse threads, the upper portion of sai body being externally threaded, a strip in said chamber having a foot engaging said terminal and formed with a contact at its upper end, a second strip carried by said body and having one end in conductive engagement with said sleeve and formed with a contact at its other end, saic contacts being in spaced relation, a retallic tape formed with a series of spaced openings defining individual fuse elements with the fuse element at the free end of said tape bridging said contacts, a disk engaging said fuse eiement at the free end of said tape and form d with a central passage, and a cap having a top wall formed with a window opening line with said passage and having a skirt formed with an internally threaded portion that is screwed onto the threads at the upper end of said body.

References Cited the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,102,206 Holmes Dec. 14, 1937 FBREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 26,468 Great Britain Oct. 15, 1903 586,240 Great Britain Mar. 12, 1947 

